Author: Greg M. Schwartz (Page 4 of 18)

Stevie Ray Vaughan: Couldn’t Stand the Weather (Legacy Edition)

August 4, 2010 /


RIYL: Indigenous, The Arc Angels, Eric Johnson

Couldn’t Stand the Weather was Stevie Ray’s second album and many fans consider the 1984 classic to be his best work. It’s full of the pioneering Texas blues virtuoso playing that made Stevie Ray famous. Now the new Legacy Edition expands the album with a slew of additional tracks, plus a second disc featuring most of the songs performed live in Montreal during the band’s 1984 tour.

The live disc absolutely smokes, making this package a big winner. Adding this to the remastered album makes this release the go-to disc for any newcomers who might wonder where to start with SRV. From the scintillating “Scuttbuttin’” opener to the epic title track to the smoldering cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child (Slight Return),” the album is just one classic after another. Then you have Stevie Ray branching out with a variety of blues styles throughout the rest of the album. Another cover, “Come On (Part III)” updates Hendrix’s cover of the blues classic and it plain smokes.

Then you get into the live disc where Stevie Ray was in his true element. But it’s also here that the Double Trouble rhythm section of drummer Chris Layton and bassist Tommy Shannon demonstrate what a lean, mean rhythm machine they were. They’re tight in the studio, but they really step up in the live setting. The band comes out guns blazing on “Testify,” which immediately conjures visions of the Jimi Hendrix Experience, where not only was Jimi ripping it up, but Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding were often going for broke as well. There’s a reckless yet focused abandon that Stevie Ray and Double Trouble display like perhaps no other power trio has since the Experience.

“Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)” gets an almost 12-minute workout here that is worth the price of admission, as does the 10-minute “Tin Pan Alley.” The latter is more of a straight blues, but features Stevie Ray delivering some of his finest old-school playing. The gorgeous ballad “Lenny,” that SRV dedicated to his lady, also receives an epic 11-minute workout. The entire release is a worthy expansion of this classic album. (Sony Legacy 2010)

Blues, CD Reviews, Psychedelic, R&B, Rock

Jonneine Zapata: Cast the Demons Out

July 30, 2010 /


RIYL: Concrete Blonde, PJ Harvey, the Dead Weather

Jonneine Zapata is a femme fatale out of LA’s famed Silverlake district, but she’s taking a much darker road than recent peers like Jenny Lewis or the Watson Twins. Zapata’s sound is much more reminiscent of LA’s early ’90s alt-rock breakout band Concrete Blonde. Zapata often sounds like she could be a sibling of Concrete Blonde vocalist Johnette Napolitano, which is classy territory.

zapata

But Zapata needs to crank up the rock factor a notch, because eight of the ten tracks here are ballads or slow blues. She has a compelling voice and powerful charisma, as evidenced on lead single “Good Looking,” a simmering tune where Zapata’s mournful voice grabs the ear. But the song never takes off, which is unfortunately the case with most of the songs. “Worry” has the same problem – the intro is entrancing, but you keep waiting for the song to kick in and it never does. Still, many of the tunes have a cinematic sort of appeal, as if taken from the soundtrack of some dark, twisted David Lynch flick.

A notable exception is “Burn,” a mid-tempo rocker composed of just a basic riff over a basic beat, but that’s all Zapata needs to propel her voice to a higher realm. The other rocker is “Cowboy,” which is downright heavy, features burning psychedelic guitar and has some serious punk attitude from Zapata. The smokey “2, 3, 4” is a highlight too, a slow burning blues song with some shimmery guitar that showcases Zapata’s mesmerizing quality when singing about what seems to be unrequited love.

Why there aren’t a few more rockers on this album is a puzzling mystery, especially considering the powerful set that Zapata and her band threw down at the Red Eyed Fly during Austin’s SXSW Festival in March. Zapata seems to come from a haunted place, so maybe she needed to cast these demons out before she can really open up. But it would be nice to see her hook up with a producer and/or creative partner who can help her fully realize the rock goddess that is clearly within. (Laughing Outlaw Records 2009)

Jonneine Zapata MySpace page

Alternative, CD Reviews, Rock, Rock Babes

The Derek Trucks Band: Roadsongs

July 12, 2010 /


RIYL: Eric Clapton, The Allman Brothers Band, Ryan Bingham & the Dead Horses

The Derek Trucks Band is finally giving way to the overdue and inevitable Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi Band (the pair married in 2001), which perhaps means the end of the road for this phase of Trucks’ career. Trucks is an amazing slide guitar talent and this is a top-rate band, but the highlights are here and there, whereas just about every song with the new Trucks/Tedeschi band is pure magic. But the foundation for the greatness of the Trucks and Tedeschi group comes from what the DTB has been laying down for the past decade. If this is it for the DTB, Roadsongs is a great swan song – it documents what a hot band this has been, while also whetting the appetite for the new band.

A top highlight is a sweet 14-minute jam on jazz standard “Afro Blue,” which serves notice on how Trucks is not just a blues master but quite the jazzman as well. There’s great flute work from keyboardist Kofi Burbridge and fantastic jazzy blues riffing from Trucks. Tunes like “Already Free” and “Down in the Flood” from the DTB’s most recent studio album crackle with energy and sweet licks on that slide guitar. Another major highlight is the sensational pairing of “Get Out My Life Woman/Who Knows,” which opens with a fabulously dirty funk groove and deeply soulful vocals from Mike Mattison before segueing into a sick jam on the Band of Gypsys classic. This track has it all – deep electric piano/organ from Burbridge in a Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters style, strong harmony vocals, a monster groove from bassist Todd Smallie and drummer Y’Onrico Scott, and Trucks tearing it up as he blends Duane Allman with Jimi Hendrix.

“Down Don’t Bother Me No More” and “Get What You Deserve” also feature hot bluesy jams, as do most of the tracks. Eric Clapton/Derek & the Dominoes covers of “Anyday” and “Key to the Highway” display the band’s love for and skill with the early ’70s classic rock for which Trucks was named, but they also highlight the DTB’s ceiling. Once you’ve witnessed the uplifting “Anyday” performed with Tedeschi and Mattison sharing the vocals, hearing it without Tedeschi just isn’t the same. It still rocks for sure, but you want more. And that sums up this album – the DTB is dishing out some of the best blues rock available these days, but adding Tedeschi just takes the whole sound to a higher dimension. Still, this is high quality stuff. (Sony Legacy 2010)

Derek Trucks MySpace page

Americana, Artists, Blues, CD Reviews, Jam Band, Jazz

Robert Randolph and the Family Band: We Walk This Road

June 29, 2010 /


RIYL: Ben Harper, The Derek Trucks Band, Jimi Hendrix

Pedal steel guitar maestro Robert Randolph has been known more for his hot live shows than his albums, which comes with the territory when you have such instrumental talent and fit in with the jam crowd. But this album may finally help Randolph break through to a wider audience. T Bone Burnett is the producer, and he’s had a magic touch lately. Randolph says he and Burnett sat down and really examined some music history, which has served to maximize Randolph’s authentically bluesy vibe, as well as leading to some choice covers.

Opener “Traveling Shoes” is taken from an old field recording from the 1920s and finds Randolph and his sister Lenesha testifying over some gospel-tinged roots. The song sets a tone for an album that blends blues, gospel and rock in expert fashion. “Shot of Love” offers a cover of the title track from Bob Dylan’s 1981 Christian-tinged album. It’s well done, though it certainly doesn’t approach Jimi Hendrix’s iconic version of “All Along the Watchtower,” something Randolph says he was thinking about as far as trying to get into Jimi’s head on the process of covering Dylan. But Randolph strikes gold on a vibrant rendition of Prince’s “Walk Don’t Walk” that takes the funky song to a truly higher level. The empowering, feel-good jam featuring more harmony assistance from Lenesha is almost certain to become a new live favorite. There’s also a deep cover of John Lennon’s “I Don’t Wanna Be a Soldier Mama,” a well-timed bluesy lament in 2010 as the ridiculous war in Afghanistan surpasses the Vietnam War for Uncle Sam’s longest military engagement.

Another highlight comes with “If I Had My Way,” a modern version of an old Blind Willie Johnson blues that features Ben Harper guesting on guitar and vocals. It’s got an old-timey Delta blues vibe that has Randolph and Harper squaring off with great results. “Dry Bones” also builds off an old blues, which gets pumped up for a tasty workout. “I Still Belong to Jesus” has Randolph playing off his gospel roots, with his liquid steel work shining once more. “I’m Not Listening” delivers some modern blues, with Randolph calling out a century of lies for comeuppance. “Salvation” closes the album with a soulful gospel ballad, featuring piano from Leon Russell and some of Randolph’s tastiest licks.

Randolph and band have been honing their act for an entire decade now and We Walk This Road is their best work yet, as it has a strong flow to it and there’s no desire to skip over tracks. Randolph has evolved from young gun to seasoned master. (Warner Brothers 2010)

Robert Randolph MySpace page

Blues, CD Reviews, Jam Band, Rock

Stanton Moore Trio: Groove Alchemy

June 23, 2010 /


RIYL: Galactic, The Meters, Medeski Martin & Wood

One of the hardest working men in show business, Galactic drummer Stanton Moore is not the type to be content with merely releasing one of the best albums of the year with his regular band (Galactic’s Ya-Ka-May.) But while that album has some of the band’s most memorable songs in years, it dabbles in hip-hop and vocal tunes. There are probably some fans who may still prefer to hear “the redneck gangster” focus his sticks more on old school funky grooves. This is exactly what they’ll find on Groove Alchemy.

Moore is joined by longtime friends Robert Walter (Greyboy All-Stars) on organ/piano and Will Bernard on guitar for a very funky session, indeed. The album is part of an instructional book and DVD project where Moore explores the roots of classic funk drumming, which means a deep focus on what was coming from the Meters and James Brown’s band in the ’60s. The album was recorded at the increasingly trendy home studio of the Band’s Levon Helm in Woodstock, New York, which gives it a live vibe. But the sound is pure New Orleans.

Moore throws down all manner of funky beats, while Walter really goes to town on the Hammond B3 and Bernard comps out with his own funky stylings. The first couple tracks are typical Meters-style mid-tempo funk. “Pot Licker” then cranks it up a notch as Moore ups the tempo for some of his hottest work ever recorded. “Neeps and Tatties” also delivers some high-energy groovy funk, as Walter’s B3 and Moore’s drumming just go so well together. The best track might be “Knocker,” which features a super-groovy syncopated beat from Moore that instantly frees the body. Bernard adds some tasty wah-wah and Walter adds some of his best sounds too. All three elements really come together here to form that groove alchemy of the album’s title. “Shiftless” also features some superb up-tempo grooving from the trio.

There’s nothing too groundbreaking here, but all three of these guys are ace musicians, so it’s definitely a clinic in acid jazz funk. Fans of Galactic and the Meters will find plenty of what they love best. (Telarc 2010)

Stanton Moore MySpace page

CD Reviews, Funk, Jam Band

« Older posts Newer posts »

© 2026 Eat Sleep Drink Music

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑